Search age:

Search in:

Aust quick Tait furious over spot-fix link

Australian fast bowler Shaun Tait has issued a statement angrily denying any links to the arrest of three Indian cricketers allegedly involved in spot-fixing during a domestic Twenty20 game.

Indian Test player Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and fellow bowlers Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila were all arrested by Delhi police, the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency said.

The trio all play for the Rajasthan Royals in the ongoing Indian Premier League, as does former Test cricketer Tait who now specialises in the short form of the game.

Tait's name circulated in social media, on radio and a number of websites along with the three Indians, but the 30-year-old robustly denies any wrongdoing.

Advertisement

"I'm bewildered, I'm angry and I'm upset at the false suggestions I've been involved in any wrongdoing," he said in the statement.

"While I welcome the recent statements from police clearing me of any involvement, for a few hours today I was deeply distressed by the rumours that were rapidly circulating about me, most of which were aired in the social media space.

"Not only were they without foundation, they highlight the danger of a medium that deals with innuendo rather than fact, the result of which has brought my name into question.

"At no stage in my career have I engaged in spot or match fixing and I'm in discussions with my manager and legal representatives to examine how this episode unfolded and any further action I may take.

"I pride myself on playing cricket hard and fair and look forward to continuing my career in this vein."

Earlier Delhi police detailed the arrest of the three cricketers.

"It is with considerable regret and anguish that I pronounce the arrest of three players - namely Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila - and seven bookies and their assistants," Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar said.

"There was an agreement that the players would give away a minimum amount of runs in an over."

Spot-fixing involves performing in a pre-determined way at set times for the benefit of gamblers.

Kumar said the bowlers gave signals such as rotating a watch or hanging a towel at the waist before giving away the minimum number of runs decided upon.

He said up to 6 million rupees ($A112,000) was given for such an over.

"We had specific information about spot-fixing and soon came to know that these three players were involved.

"Our team was at each venue where they played because signals could have been given even during commercial breaks," said Kumar, whose officials also read out transcripts of alleged phone conversations between bookies and players.

All three cricketers, who face charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy, have been suspended by the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

Last year, little-known allrounder TP Sudhindra was handed a life ban after he was shown in a sting operation by India TV news channel as agreeing to bowl a no-ball at a predetermined time in a local T20 game in the central Indian city of Indore.

Police in New Delhi were also involved in investigations into the match-fixing allegations of the 1990s which implicated former South Africa test captain Hansie Cronje.

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt, fast bowler Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir had been found guilty of spot-fixing during a series in England in 2010 and served from three to seven months in prison.